1、Nowadays, the opera house is such a part of Sydney that it is difficult to remember the anguish that surrounded its creation.A rough sketch of the possibilities of such a builiding by the architectural genius Jorn Utzon,submitted to an international competition in 1956,was initially almost ignored,b
2、ut was evenually selected as the plan most suited to the sites unique position on Bennelong Point. The technology for much of what Utzon designed did not exist and had to be invented as the job went along. As a result there were staggering cost escalations,met by the Opera House lottery,and a final
3、bill of over $100 million. In the end Utzon resigned-driven out by government-and the great building was completed by others.It opened in 1973 to a fanfare of trumpets.Today the cost is forgotten, but the greatness remains. It is one of the major architectural achievements of the world. Technically, though, it is not an opera house-you cannot hold, major productions there as the stages and backstage area are too small. Billy Wentworth, Sydney MP and minister, said that the Sydney Opera House was the greatest public-relations buliding since the pyramids. He may well be right.
